Melissa,

There are other concerns in this.

Usually historic brass objects are not polished. Polishing removes patina and thus degrades the historic and monetary value of the object. Polishing brass components, such as furniture mounts, can also damage the adjacent materials such as wood, etc. If a historic brass object is considered functional, such as church objects in use, or is a component of an antique car or architecture, then polishing may be ok. Sometimes there may be more damaging corrosion that will require cleaning and re-polishing to stabilize the object and present it with an even appearance.

Many brass objects have been lacquered in the past and so you not only get into polishing but also using chemicals to remove old degraded lacquers And this opens up a nest of special things you have to do for safety, etc

So, my advice, is if it is stable and has a nice mellow patina, to lightly dust it and leave it be.

If you have special concerns then feel free to contact me off the list and you can send digital photos of any objects you have questions about.

Cheers!
Dave

David Harvey
Senior Conservator and Museum Consultant
Los Angeles, CA

On Thu, Feb 18, 2010 at 1:21 PM, Melissa Jolley <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Are there any acceptable brass polishes for use on artifacts? I have seen the concerns with Brasso, but I haven’t seen many options for what is safe and effective. Has anyone ever tried Hagerty brass polish? 
 

In one of the posts from the list serv, I saw where Brasso can cause damage that may not show up for a few years. There are a some objects in our collection that are known to have been polished with Brasso, is there anything that can be done to prevent or slow corrosion?

 

Thanks,

Melissa Jolley

Curator, Redcliffe Plantation State Historic Site

[log in to unmask]

 


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